Category: News

ENNIS Golf Club has installed a new security system aimed at ensuring greater protection for staff and members in response to recent break-ins at the club.

Members must now type in an access code at the main entrance door in order to gain access to the clubhouse at night. Last year, a group of people gained entry to the clubhouse late at night by cutting a hole in the roof at the rear of the building and into the bar area, where a safe was removed.

Earlier this year, an intruder broke glass in the club shop before gaining access to the dressing room area.

Honourary secretary John Cullinane explained that in light of those recent events and given that staff are often alone in the building at night when they finish work, the club felt it was necessary to improve security.

He explained, “It was done more so for the health and safety of staff. Some nights you might only have one female staff member working alone.” Mr Cullinane added, “We have CCTV to identify members and an alarm system. We were looking at security issues in general for the club house.”

Meanwhile, Mr Cullinane added that members have responded positively by email and letter to Clare County Council’s request for submission to a proposed pedestrian crossing.

Speed ramps have been installed on a section of road near the golf club. The ramps form part of an overall scheme of traffic calming measures, which will include the installation of a pedestrian crossing, linking sections of the golf course.

Ennis Golf Club has contributed € 10,000 to the overall cost of the project, which members say is essential to protect members’ safety.

In May, the council launched a public consultation process with all submissions and/or objections to be submitted by June 24.

Speaking then, Town Engineer Eamon O’Dea that the ramps are necessary to slow traffic ahead of the pedestrian crossing. He said cars often travel at speeds of 70km per hour in an area where the speed limit is 50km per hour.

The measures had been opposed by some councillors who claimed they had caused disruption to motorists.

Speaking yesterday, Mr Cullinane said the gradient of the ramps had been lowered in order to address the concerns of the public. He said the crossing remained dangerous for maintenance staff and golfers, particularly the club’s 200 senior members.

Mr Cullinane added that engineers at both Ennis Town Council and Clare County Council had expressed support for the installation of a pedestrian crossing.

LAHINCH ar tist Michael Hanrahan wi ll later this mont h become the only l iving Irish ar tist to have a piece of his work included in the most exclusive ar t collection in the world.

Michael, who was the only ar tist accredited to cover the Queen’s historic visit to Ireland, will fly out from Shannon Ai r por t later this month to hand-deliver one of his works to Buckingham Palace.

The for mer banker, who reti red from the financial world to become an ar tist just five years ago, received a letter from Buckingham Palace last Wednesday, informing him t hat the Queen would be “ver y pleased” to receive the painti ng for her collection.

The painting, which depicts President Mar y McAleese and the Queen at the Garden of Remembrance, was on display at Kenny’s Ar t Galler y in Lahinch over t he weekend, and will hang at White Ar t Gallery in Dublin for three weeks before being hand-del ivered by Michael to Buckingham Palace.

“The letter came into my postbox yesterday and I knew it was an i mpor tant letter when I spot ted the royal seal on t he back of it. The letter had been sent from the Queen’s private secretar y telling me that the Queen would be ver y pleased to receive one of my paintings. I was overwhel med and ver y honoured,” said Michael.

“The Queen has one of t he biggest and most expensive ar t collections i n the world. Some are held in Buckingham Palace and some at another palace in Edinburgh.

“This work will be exhibited all around t he UK as par t of the Queen’s diamond jubilee next year and it is amazing to think that an ar tist from Clare would be par t of this collection.

“I will be t he proudest man in Ireland flying from Shannon over to London with that painting to deliver it to the Queen.”

Michael was t he only non-photographer given full access to record t he Queen’s visit to Ireland earlier t his year in its enti rety.

“I was there for t he four days of t he t rip and I think I had a unique role to play in recording the event for future generations. It was an historic occasion. Most of t he work was done back in the Cour thouse Gallery and Studios in Ennistymon,” continued Michael.

“As an ar tist, I had the oppor t unity to think about it and do somet hing a bit different. A painting is different from a photograph – it’s framed and it is an inter pret ation. I t hink this puts more of an emphasis on people to t hink about what t hey are looking at. This was an opport unity t hat I couldn’t pass up.”

A TOTAL of 11,892 dwellings in Clare are currently not being lived in, a figure which equates to over a fifth of the entire housing stock in the county.

The figure was made public with the release of prelimenary Census 2011 findings which recorded the number of vacant residences, while at the same time revealing a rise in the population of the county by some 5.5 per cent.

There are now 116,885 people living in the county, only the second time in 110 years that the county’s population has broken the 110,000 barrier.

The Census figures reveal that the number of new housing stock in Clare increased by 14 per cent in between the 2006 and 2011 censuses, which means that Clare house builds ran ahead of the national average of 13.3 per cent.

However, the breakdown of these figures have also revealed that this in housing numbers has contributed to a sharper increase in the number of vacant dwellings around the county.

The vacancy rate in Clare is now running at nearly 22 per cent, eight points higher than the national average of 14.7 per cent, with the western seaboard being the worst part of the county affected.

A map of the county produced by the CSO shows that vacancy rates in west and north Clare are now running at over 25 per cent, startling figures that back up claims made to The Clare People by a number of Census enumerators from their experiences on the ground back in April.

Only seven other counties have higher rates of vacant housing than Clare, the reason being traced back to the building boom that saw a proliferation of holiday homes during the Celtic Tiger years and the special seaside resort status given to Kilkee and Lahinch by the Rainbow Coalition in the 1990s.

A BURNING candle in the sitting room of a house may have caused the death of a 53-year-old man in a house fire over the weekend.

Michael Kennedy died after a fire broke out at a newly-renovated singlestorey home on the Grange Road in Ballina in the early hours of Sunday.

Two other people – Mr Kennedy’s wife and a friend – who were also in the house at the time, escaped from another room. However, Mr Kennedy became trapped in the sitting room.

He was pronounced dead at the scene and his body was taken to Limerick Regional Hospital for a post mortem examination, which was carried out by Deputy State Pathologist Dr Michael Curtis.

The fire broke out after 2am. The scene was preserved and a Garda technical examination took place on Sunday.

“The fire started in the sitting room in the house. The sitting room was very badly damaged,” said Inspector John O’Sullivan of Killaloe Garda Station, who is heading up the enquiry into the tragic accident.

He said the two women who escaped from the house were “badly shaken” but fortunately did not receive serious burn injuries. Gardaí have taken statements from the ladies, in an effort to determine the exact cause of the fire.

OVER 5,000 this people are set to descend on Miltown Malbay and district from this weekend for the annual Scoil Samhraidh Willie Clancy music festival that’s worth an estimated € 5m to the local economy.

The 39th festival, which commemorates the famous Miltown Malbay musician who died in 1973, will be officially opened this Saturday night by Sean Keane of The Chieftans, while a host of marquee names in traditional music will attend over the course of the event that runs from July 2 to 10.

“The key to the success of the Scoil Samhradh,” says festival Co-Director, Harry Hughes, “ is that we have always tried to maintain an excellence in the tuition that we offer ever year.

“This year we have the likes of Martin Hayes who comes to the festival every year, Edel Fox, Paddy Glackin, Mick Mulkerrins, Kieran Hanrahan and Rip Epping, while photographer Tony Kearns, who has been documenting the school over a long number of years will deliver the Breandán Breathnach Memorial Lecture, An Eye for the Music, which discusses the relationship between photography and Irish traditional music,” adds Hughes, who founded the festival back in 1973 with Muiris Ó Rocháin and Martin Talty.

For the past number of years, the Tuesday of summer school week has been devoted to celebrating the life and work of a musician who has made a significant contribution to the Irish musical heritage.

This year the honour goes to Clare’s own Peadar O’Loughlin, the Kilmaley flute and pipe player, who is regarded as one of the masters of the musical tradition.

The Peadar O’Loughlin tribute takes place on Tuesday next and will feature contributions from his friends and fellow musicians, will be coordinated by piper and RT presenter and producer, Peter Browne.

REMEDIAL works on 17 local authority houses in Scariff have been completed, at a cost of € 850,000.

The Mayor of Clare, Councillor Christy Curtin (Independent), was handed the keys of the 17 units at Connaught Road, Scariff, on Friday, following the completion of the project.

The project contract, which was awarded to Galway construction company Atlantic Developments Limited in October, involved upgrade works to the 17 tenanted properties in the estate. This included insulation, roofing, windows and doors replacement.

The houses are part of a batch of 31 homes which were constructed in the 1970s. The remaining 14 houses have since been purchased.

New heating systems, including high efficiency oil boilers supplemented with solid fuel stoves, have been upgraded to achieve a C1 Building Energy Rating (BER). Solar panels also have been provided on the roofs of four bungalows to achieve a high energy rating.

Other works include general environmental drainage and a new watermain, boundary treatment to all 31 houses, and improvement works to roads, public lighting and footpaths in the estate.

“The improvement to the energy efficiency of these houses in Scariff will make a great difference to the comfort factor for the occupants. I would like to acknowledge the excellent work carried out by the contractor and design team who successfully completed the project on time and within budget,” said Mr Curtin.

The Chairperson of the Council’s Housing Strategic Policy Committee, Cllr Patricia McCarthy (Independent), thanked residents for their “forbearance and co-operation while their homes were being upgraded”.

“Many residents voluntarily relocated for the duration of the works while those who remained in residence co-operated fully with the contractor and tolerated a level of inconvenience. They can now look forward to enjoying an improved quality of life in their upgraded homes,” she said.

The project funding of € 850,000 was provided by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

THERE was a large turnout in St Joseph’s Church in Whitegate on Friday as family and many friends gathered for Mass to remember a local priest and sportsman who died recently.

Canon Jim Mulvihill, a native of Capanthrane, Whitgate, passed away earlier this month aged 90. He is sadly missed by family members in Whitegate and Scariff and fondly remembered by those who shared his huge sporting enthusiasm.

He was the son of the late Johanna and Partick Mulvilhill and was one of five children – Anna, Maggie May, Tommie and Mikey.

He went to school at Lakyle National School and later attended St Flannan’s in Ennis.

Noted for his talent on the hurling field, Canon Mulvihill won several tophies when he played with the Ennis hurling nursery and he was part of the team which won the Canon O’Kennedy Shield against holders, St Finbarr’s of Farranferris. He also played for his native Whitegate.

When he wasn’t on the hurling field, Canon Jim was often to be found induging his other great sporting passion, fishing on Lough Derg.

He studied for the priesthood in St Patrick’s in Carlow and was ordained on June 3, 1945.

He was sent first to serve in the diocese of Tuscan in Arizona and then returned to Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales.

He was incardinated into the archdiocese of Cardiff in 1963 and was appointed as parish priest to Bromyard in Herefordshire in 1967. In 1997 he was appointed parish priest of St Basil and St Gwladys. He retired from that appointment in 2002 but continued to say daily Mass in the parish.

In 2005 he celebrated sixty years in the priesthood.

Canon Mulvihill was in constant contact with his native Clare and regularly welcomed visitors from the county.

He passed away in the care of the sisters and staff of Nazareth House, where he had lived since 2007.

Archbishop Georg Stack of Cardiff was the chief celebrant at Canon Mulvihill’s funeral Mass.

He is survived by his nephews and nieces: the Mulvihills in Whitegate, Marie, Pat, Jim Tom and Den; and im Scariff, the McMahon’s Paddy, Seanie, Noel, Michael and Mary; as well as many friends, both lay and clergy.

APPLICATIONS from people in Clare to have broadband provided under the Rural Broadband Scheme are fewer than from other counties across the country, it has been revealed.

In response to a query from The Clare People , a spokesperson for the Rural Broadband Scheme said that just 32 applications applications from areas in County Clare have been received to date, despite the fact that almost every area in the county is eligible to apply.

Only Ennis and a few other pockets in the county are ruled out of the scheme, but few Banner residents have opted to take advantage of it.

“Applications from Clare are definitely less than the national average but there is still some short time left for people to apply,” the spokesperson said.

Pointing out that access to broadband is vital for rural businesses and increasingly becoming a basic tool in homes and schools, the spokesperson said that it’s important that Clare people, who may qualify, get their applications in before the July 29 deadline.

The Rural Broadband Scheme was established to enable a basic broadband service to be provided to individual rural premises, which are not capable of obtaining a broadband service from existing internet service providers. The Scheme was set up in conjunction with the Department of Agriculture as a measure under the Rural Development Plan using funding from the European Agriculture Fund for Rural Development.

This first phase involves inviting and processing applications. In the second phase of the scheme, the department will check with existing internet service providers to see if they are willing to provide a service to the premises concerned. If none of the companies concerned are prepared to offer a service, then the application will progress to the next phase in the scheme in which the department will engage an internet service provider who will offer a basic internet service to applicants. While the department will be paying part of the cost of the infrastructure necessary to provide a service, the applicant will be responsible for paying the costs of the service itself.

It’s expected that the scheme should be completed by the end of 2012 at the latest.

Anyone interested can apply online by visiting the department’s website www.dcenr.ie and following the links for the Rural Broadband Scheme, by downloading an application from the website and sending it in the post or alternatively by calling 01 6782020 or call save the RBS on 1850 678100. The link includes a map of Clare showing the eligible areas.

THE new mayor of Kilrush has called for a new coalition of forces to emerge in the west Clare capital to ensure that the town becomes a growth hub the development in the next decade.

Mayor Ian Lynch made his comments after the annual general meeting of Kilrush Town Council on Monday office after taking the chains of office from fellow Fine Gael councillor, Liam Williams.

“Kilrush has a lot of things going for it,” Mayor Lynch told The Clare People, “but the key for the town going forward is that everyone works together as a unit, so that the town can be created as a destination for living, a destination for commercial and industrial activity and a destination for tourism.”

Cllr Lynch, who served as Deputy Mayor for the last year, was unanimously elected unto become First Citizen on Kilrush, while independent member, Cllr Mairéad O’Brien was elected Deputy Mayor.

“This council must stand strong and face the people of Kilrush and indeed West Clare that look to us for solutions and inspiration in how we can effect change,” continued Mayor Lynch.

“While there is no doubt that the coming 12 months and possibly coming years will indeed be tough, but I’m a great believer in the reliance of our people to adapt and innovate.

“Kilrush Town Council will have to adapt to a reduced budget in many areas that will affect the services we can offer and how we prioritise the needs of the town. I hope as Mayor in the coming year to encourage and promote practicable and speedy solutions to the everyday concerns of the people of Kilrush.

“Many of theses concerns, such as the condition of our local roads, support for children be it education, after school activities or for those with special needs or indeed the urgent need to address unemployment and our local health care services are in fact the common concerns of all the people of Kilrush and County Clare,” he added.

Cllr Lynch, who was first elected to Kilrush Town Council in 2009, was proposed for the mayor’s position by outgoing mayor, Liam Williams and seconded by former mayor, Marion McMahon-Jones.

AN POST customers are asked to be on their guard against a new scam email, after Clare businesses were targeted.

The mail contains the subject line “RE: Information TV License #12488340238” and claims to come from service@tvlicence.ie. The email offers a refund of € 58.00 on an overpayment for a TV Licence.

Confirming that they have had complaints from “mostly business customers” a spokeswoman for An Post said that anyone getting the mail should delete it and under no circumstances click on the accompanying link.

“Anyone who provided personal information in response to these hoax emails should contact their bank or credit card company immediately,” she added.

John Halloran, from Westbury, who runs his own web-design company was one of the businesses who received the email.

“It was offering me a refund on my TV licence fee and I smelled a rat straight away because my wife is the one who always looks after renewing the TV licence and the mail cam to my business email. But I might have been drawn into it, at least to a certain point otherwise. I can see how people go along with it, thinking that if it comes from An Post, then it must be genuine. In fact I got a call from a customer of mine asking did I think she should reply and I told her no way. That’s why I contacted you, [ The Clare People ] in case anyone else is fooled.”

It’s understood that a number of businesses were targetted.

“An Post TV Licence never send emails which require customers to send personal information via email or pop-up windows. This was not a particularly sophisticated scam but if these people get even a tiny percentage of the people they contact to cooperate, then they have made money and it costs them nothing to email people,” the spokeswoman said.

She added that customer should also be on the alert about mails which inform customers that they have won a prize.

“These mails are just about legal. If you ring the number, you’ll be on hold at a premium rate for 20 or 30 minutes. If you persist and claim the prize, then there will be something like a book or a magazine. But we have to deliver these letters because they are paid for an mailed legally.”